3. Online reviews

Google’s latest algorithm was designed to improve the experience for local searchers. They want to show users the best search results in their local area to improve their service.

That means your website’s presence in the local arena is more important than ever. (Tip: you can find out more about local SEO at LosAngelesSEO.org).

To find out the best services in a particular area, Google looks to online review sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp! It’s the best way to gauge real customer value.

4. User experience

In the last two years, Google have been working on improving their algorithm to take user experience into account. Everything from site design to navigation is considered.

Understandably, they don’t want to send users to a website that is frustrating and difficult to navigate. One thing that they have begun to focus on is website speed.

If a site takes too long to load, Google will force it down the rankings. They know that a user experience reflects on them too. So, make sure your site is fast, and easy to navigate.

5. Regular updates

Google are always on the lookout for websites that regularly update themselves. It shows them that there is an active force behind the business.

It proves that there is regular, dynamic content and information being distributed.

Google will stop sending crawlers to websites that fail to update regularly. That means pages will take longer to be indexed, and less likely to rank.

6. User engagement

Google have recently been developing an intuitive way to find out how engaging your website is. They’re looking to rank websites that are demonstrably useful and engaging to users.

One of the ways it does this is by diving into your website statistics. It will look at the average ‘time-on-site’ for starters. If your visitors are spending a long time on your site, Google can infer that you have lots of engaging content to offer.

It does the same with ‘bounce rate’. If your bounce rate is low, Google knows that you have plenty of great content that users are enjoying.

7. Natural and organic growth

The most important thing that Google is looking for is natural and organic growth. It can easily detect backhanded techniques, and will penalise sites that practice it.

Meanwhile, it will reward sites that practice organic content growth and development.

There you have it, folks!

Now you know what Google is looking for, you can work on boosting your search rank.